


Tributaries

by suecollins



Category: The Shape of Water (2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Domestic, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-21
Updated: 2018-10-01
Packaged: 2019-05-09 21:57:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 20
Words: 15,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14724302
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/suecollins/pseuds/suecollins
Summary: Small bits and pieces from the everyday life of Elisa and the Asset.





	1. Hold my hand

**Author's Note:**

> These short stories were originally written for a friend after given a series of prompts, and now she bullied me into uploading them. Credits to her for not shutting up about TSOW, ever.

Elisa kicked the garbage bag out of the way. With all the windows open, she was hoping to get rid of the smell of blood and bleach that was suffocating her as she was cleaning up the mess in the living room. She collected all the empty bottles in a plastic bag and placed it next to the door. First thing in the morning she will take everything down and threw the bags in the nearest dumpster. But until then, she'll just have to ignore it.

And ignore it she will. It was not the creature's fault.

Elisa took two boiled eggs from the stove and went to the bathroom, opening the door as slowly and quietly as she could. He was lying in the bathtub, head underwater, eyes closed. His body coloured the water in the most beautiful shades she has ever seen. The creature sensed her presence, and opened his eyes.

"Hello," Elisa signed to him shyly. He didn't respond, just turned his head away from her.

Elisa sat down next to the bathtub. She placed the eggs on his stomach in a playful manner; as her fingers touched the shiny scales, she shivered. The creature didn't move an inch, and it broke her heart. It was not his fault. He needed to know that.

She needed to let him know that.

Elisa took a deep breath, and moved her hand all the way up to his face. She gently touched his cheek, and encouraged him to look at her. As their eyes met, it felt like the world had stopped turning.

Not letting go of his face, Elisa raised her other hand, and signed the words _not your fault_. The creature looked at her as if he was puzzled by that, so Elisa pointed at his stomach to indicate that she was talking about the incident with the cat. Because that's what it was, an unfortunate incident and nothing more.

He seemed to understand her now, because with a strained look on his face he suddenly flipped to his side, turning his back to her, and pulled his legs and arms close to his body in a fetus-like position. The eggs sank down behind his back. As she watched the water sadly rock the eggs at the bottom of the tub, Elisa could almost hear her own heart break into a million pieces. The poor thing didn't know he was doing a bad thing, how could he have known? He was just hungry, and he did what any other hungry creature would have done: he fed. How could she make him understand that he didn't do anything wrong? That it was just a natural instinct taking over him?

_He looks so small and vulnerable_ , Elisa thought. He was so innocent and beautiful, she couldn't understand how anyone would want to hurt him or use him for evil purposes. How could he even do anything evil, when he is so pure? The very last of his kind. A unique treasure she had to protect, no matter the cost.

She moved closer to the bathtub, reaching across and into the water. Her hand searched for his, and when she found it, she grabbed it and intertwined their fingers, not giving him a chance to pull away. The creature turned his head, and looked her in the eyes again. She smiled at him, the warmest smile ever. She pointed at him again, and shook her head; then with her free hand she reached for his face again, her fingers brushing his lips. _Not. Your. Fault_. She signed again, this time with enough determination in her eyes that the creature couldn't help but believe her. He slowly turned his body back, now facing Elisa. Both his hands holding on to her right, while her left went back to caressing his face.

As the creature closed his eyes, Elisa could tell that this time it was not out of shame. She could swear that for a brief moment he even smiled. Elisa moved her left hand to his chest, feeling the precious heartbeat under her palm.

The water was lukewarm, and for now, everything was all right.


	2. Touch me

Elisa dropped her bag on the floor when she finally stepped into the apartment. She's been through a long and rough shift, cleaning up the local library. She spent the whole afternoon and half of the evening stacking books and dusting shelves; she couldn't feel her legs and her head was throbbing. She peaked into the bathroom as she headed towards her room, the creature happily waving at her when she passed. Elisa smiled. No matter what a horrible day she had, the creature always cheered her up.

She took off her dirty clothes and stopped for a second, thinking about what to do next. She should definitely take a shower, and then prepare dinner. Did she even have anything in the fridge though, apart from eggs? Probably not. It was empty, just like her wallet. She sat on the bed, with her head in her hands. Elisa was tired, so tired; why wasn't she one of the lucky ones who didn't have to worry about anything? Why didn't she have a nice job with good salary? She inhaled deeply, and then sighed. No! These kind of thoughts weren't going to get her any further.

She walked to her closet and shuffled through the clothes to find something comfortable, but then she thought about it and stopped. She wanted to take a bath first, didn't she? She probably should ask the creature to let her do that.

Or maybe she could just join him instead.

Elisa shrugged. It's not like they haven't done that before.

She closed the wardrobe, and naked as she was, simply walked across the living room and into the bathroom. The creature was lying in the water, with his head underwater; his eyes were closed, his body relaxed. Elisa sat on the ledge of the bathtub, and lowering her hand into the water, she touched the creature's arm. He opened his eyes and looked at her. When he moved, ripples expanded across the water; droplets ran down his scales as he rose. Elisa smiled at him, gently running her fingers through his face. _I've missed you_ , she signed to him. He tilted his head, and signed, albeit not completely correctly, _miss_ back to Elisa.

She had to force herself not to burst into tears. She loved this creature so much, and he loved her the same. A light breeze came in through the door, and Elisa shivered. The creature, as if noticing her nakedness for the first time, quickly stretched both his arms towards her.

_You want me to join you?_ Elisa asked. The creature pointed at the water, and signed the word for _warm_. Elisa took that as a yes, and lifted her legs over the ledge.

The creature moved a little bit, so she could climb into the tub next to him. Elisa sat down, her body relieved at the feeling of the warm liquid. The creature put an arm around her shoulders, protecting her from the cold breeze. After a few minutes, she turned to her side, his back pressing into the creature's chest. He shifted a bit as well, now both his arms around Elisa, his fingers tickling her stomach. Elisa closed her eyes as she laughed quietly; the creature just stared at her in awe, brushing a strand of hair out of her face. Elisa shifted again so their bodies were now completely pressed together, her legs intertwined with his. The water rocked around them smoothly, a few drops hitting Elisa's face.

She didn't mind though. In fact, she yearned for the touch of the water, just like she yearned for the touch of the creature.

And now she had both.


	3. Merry Christmas!

The lights on the Christmas tree were beautiful. They played in faint yellow colours, flashing and then fading, making the living room feel warmer than it actually was. The snow has been falling for days now, and Elisa struggled to keep the heat inside the apartment. She pulled the thick curtains to cover the windows, and turned towards the bathroom when she heard the door creak.

The creature was standing still, his eyes fixed on the Christmas tree. They reflected the lights, and Elisa felt her heart swell with happiness. This was their first Christmas together, and she wanted it to be special. Just as special as the creature was. She walked up to him, taking his hand and leading him towards the old couch right next to the tree. They didn't have much time; thirty minutes was the most he could spend outside the water.

She set a cooking timer she retrieved from the kitchen, and placed it on the table.

Thirty minutes.

The creature sat down next to Elisa, his eyes glowing with warmth. He raised his hand, and pointed at one of the ornaments. He looked at Elisa and clumsily signed the word _food_. Elisa chuckled and shook her head. She pointed to the table, where the boiled eggs sat in a porcelain bowl. He grabbed two of the eggs, and stuffed them into his mouth. Elisa laughed and scooted closer to the creature. Feeling the heat radiating from his body, suddenly she felt a bit dizzy. How nice would it be just to lay here all night, listening to the howling of the wind, watching the Christmas lights flicker?

But they only had thirty minutes.

Elisa stood from the couch and crouched down to pick up a tiny box from under the tree. A few days ago, she tried to teach the creature what Christmas was, and how people gave presents to their loved ones. As she sat back on the couch, the creature looked away from the tree, and observed the box in her lap. She signed to him that it was a Christmas present to him. From her.

The creature kept looking back and forth between her face and the box. He seemed to be thinking, trying to figure out the word _present_. She remembered what she told him about presents. That they were things, objects, that surprised people and made them happy. Now that she thought about it, in his world, probably everything was a present. Everything he saw was surprising; most of them made him happy as well. Elisa signed again, _To you. From me. With love._

The creature's eyes brightened at the word _love_. That word he understood better than anything, for love was the most powerful thing he ever felt.

Love for Elisa.

She put the box in his hands, and waited patiently. The creature touched the box, prodding it with his fingers. He turned it around, looked at it from every side, turned it upside down, even smelled it; Elisa's grin kept getting bigger and bigger. He was so adorable. When he finally decided that it was not suspicious, he tried to open the box. But he didn't know how, he just squeezed it hard, almost breaking it. Elisa thought it was better to help him, so she took his hands in hers, and guided him in opening the tiny box. When they finally made it through the wrapping and the lock, the box was open, and the creature looked as surprised as ever. Elisa caught him studying the framed pictures on the wall earlier, and tried to explain to him what pictures and photographs were. He seemed to like them, so Elisa decided to give him one for Christmas. It was a picture of her, in a waterproof plastic holder. He didn't know the word _waterproof_ yet, but it was irrelevant for him anyway.

The creature held the picture in his hand, gazing at it with so much love, it almost made Elisa cry. She glanced at the timer, which showed they still had fifteen minutes before the creature had to go back to the bathtub. She gently pushed him back, and found her way into his arms. As she laid her head on his chest, he instinctively put his arms around her, the picture still in his hand. They laid there in each other's arms, peace and calm taking over them.

_Merry Christmas_ , Elisa signed.

The creature growled softly.


	4. Snowtime

"He's gonna be just fine," Giles said to Elisa, as they watched the creature jump headfirst into the ice cold river.

_He should be_ , Elisa replied, still looking a bit concerned. She hasn't let him swim in the Patapsco since the heavy snow started falling, but today was a surprisingly sunny day, and Giles convinced her that some fresh air would be good for her and the creature as well. It was a nice and quiet Friday morning, with everyone at work; except for Elisa, whose shift at the library got cancelled today. She wasn't happy about it, because the less she worked, the less money she got, but she was tired and Giles was right. She needed a break from all that stress, and the creature needed a break from the bathtub.

Giles carried two camping chairs, which he placed right next to the edge of the dock. Elisa brought two blankets that Zelda lent her; they were warm, and significantly less tattered than Elisa's own. She also had a little basket with her, in which there was hot tea, boiled eggs, and some cookies that Giles baked last night. The two of them sat on the camping chairs as the creature explored the Patapsco. Elisa knew from a book she found at the library, that even though the wildlife of the Amazon river preferred warm weather, they were fine with the cold as well. Nonetheless, Elisa kept glancing at her old wristwatch. The creature has been underwater for about half an hour now.

"Don't worry, my dear," Giles put a hand on her shoulder. "Look, there he is!"

The creature's head popped up, eyes wide open, his entire body flashing pink and yellow. He looked so happy to be outside, Elisa couldn't help but smile back at him. She reached into her little basket and took out two boiled eggs, which she dropped into the creature's waiting hands. _It's cold_ , she signed to him, motioning towards the blankets. _You should get out now_. The creature didn't look particularly glad to hear that, but he did as he was told, and climbed out of the water. Elisa draped a blanket around him, trying to soak up every drop of water before it froze on his shiny scales. Elisa chuckled at the thought of an ice sculpture of the creature.

"He would make an excellent snowman!" Giles told them, laughing, reading Elisa's mind. He pointed at the creature’s face: there were tiny pieces of ice on his forehead. Elisa wiped them down, grinning. Then, with a sudden thought, she took the creature's hands, and lead him towards the other end of the dock, where the fresh snow from last night has been piled up. She turned to Giles and signed the word _snowman_ to him.

Giles laughed again, this time much louder. He signed _good luck_ to her, indicating that it was going to be quite the ride to explain the who's and what's of a snowman. But Elisa was more than up for the challenge, so she flashed a quick thumbs-up to the old man.

She turned towards the creature, and started to think. They did talk about marble sculptures before, when he saw them in a movie. He didn't understand why those people weren't moving, so Elisa told him that those were similar to photographs and paintings, only they looked more real, and they could be touched. The creature seemed to understand that, so Elisa was hoping to have an easy time, trying to discuss snowmen.

She first signed him the word _sculpture_ , at which, to Elisa's relief, he nodded enthusiastically. Elisa had a feeling that he preferred sculptures over photos. Who would've thought, an amphibian man who likes arts! Then she pointed at the pile of snow, and started to explain it to him that sculptures can be made of different materials. Some are made of stone, some out of marble, and in winter, she went on, some are made out of ice and snow. He blinked at the pile of snow, trying to process that the white stuff can be shaped into a human figure. Elisa bent down and scooped up a little snow into her hands, and started to create a snowball. _See?_ she asked the creature. _This is a ball, made out of snow. We can make more balls; and we can make bigger balls._

Elisa put the small snowball into his hands, and the creature raised it in front of his face to observe it from up close. When he deemed the snowball an interesting piece of work, he pointed at the rest of the snow, and signed the word _big_ to Elisa. Elisa motioned him to come closer; the creature looked at her, and then at the snowball between his fingers, contemplating what to do with it. He then turned away from Elisa, and hurried to Giles, giving him the snowball so the man can look after it while he's dealing with the rest. Giles smiled and took it from him, carefully placing it into his lap and nodding at the creature.

Elisa watched them, her heart melting. The creature jogged back to her, squatting down next to the pile, eyeing it suspiciously. Elisa clapped her hand in excitement, and proceeded to create a bigger snowball now. The creature studied her every move, and then he himself scooped up a bit of snow, and started to shape it the same way Elisa did. With the webs between his fingers, it was easy for him, and soon his snowball was three times bigger than Elisa's.

Giles glanced at them over the newspaper in his hand. The snowball in his lap already started to melt, but he wasn't worried. He'll make another one before the creature asks for it back.


	5. Sorry

Elisa settled on the couch, waiting for the creature to join her. He was still crouching in front of the tiny television, poking at the screen with a finger. He couldn't understand how those people got into the box. It reminded him of his tank in the laboratory, and how he wanted to get out. He didn't understand why these people seem so cheerful, locked in that tiny box. He glanced at Elisa, who just smiled at him and patted the couch next to her, motioning for him to sit down. She tried to explain television to the creature when he accidentally turned it on by sitting on the remote control. He got scared, so scared that he almost broke the wooden table in front of the couch. The creature turned back to the screen, poked at it once more, but decided to leave it for now.

As he took his place next to her, Elisa pushed a button on the remote control, and changed the channel. They were playing a short documentary about the Amazonian jungle, and she thought the creature might like it. At first there were trees and birds; Elisa could only imagine the bright colours and the smell of the jungle. When they showed the Amazon river, she watched the creature out of the corner of her eye, waiting for his reaction, but the creature didn't seem to recognise it just yet; the screen was so small that the black and white pictures were hardly identifiable. Elisa patted the creature on the knee, pointed at the screen and signed the words _water_ and _home_ to him. She taught him that word, _home_ , and he knew now that the apartment was Elisa's home. The apartment next to hers was Giles' home. The tank in the laboratory was not home. Water was home. 

The creature focused on Elisa's hand, figuring out the sign. Then turning away, his eyes widened and he let out a tiny growl. Elisa placed her hand on his, but the creature jumped up and stood in front of the television, his face almost touching the screen. He was hissing and whining now, both his hands grabbing the television. Elisa stood up, not knowing what to do. Has she made a mistake? Maybe she shouldn't have reminded the creature of the Amazon; he probably didn't know the meaning of homesickness, but he sure did feel it. Elisa took a step forward, but the creature hissed at her, so she sat back and waited. He would never hurt her, but he was upset now, so it was better to leave him for now. Soon he had to return to the bathtub, Elisa counted the minutes on her wristwatch.

When the creature finally let go of the box, he sat on the ground, and looked at the woman. His eyes were full of pain and loneliness. He must have missed his home so much, Elisa thought. She could never give him that. She could never give him the freedom of the river. Her heart sank, and she didn't know what to do. The creature just sat there, looking miserable.

Elisa decided to approach him, slowly. When he didn't make a sound, she just kneeled down next to him, and placed a hand on his back. _Sorry_ , she signed. The creature closed his eyes, his head hanging low. Elisa scooted closer, and now with both arms, hugged him tightly. The creature gently laid his head on her upper arm. Elisa felt her blouse getting wet; the creature was crying. Elisa felt her own tears coming, so she pulled the creature up, and sat him down again on the couch. Keeping him lose with one hand, the other searched for the remote, and changed the channel back to that old movie with singing and dancing. Maybe the creature would like that better.

His tears dried on his face as he watched the lady and the man swaying in a softly lit room. Elisa was holding his hand, gently rocking to the rhythm of the music. A few more minutes, and she felt the creature putting more and more weight on her shoulder.

It was time to go back. 


	6. Dance with me

Elisa and the creature were sitting on the couch, his body wrapped into a towel. He just got out of the bathtub, and water was still dripping from his scales. Elisa's arm was pressed to his; she had the remote control in her hand, and she was trying to find something decent in the television that they could watch. There was a war documentary on one channel, but it involved a lot of gunshots, which was something she wasn't too keen on letting the creature see. Another one showed a romantic movie, but Elisa was too mentally tired to get engaged in such a story. A few minutes later, she found an old musical, and she decided to go with that.

The man and the woman on the screen were singing and dancing around a kitchen table. There was a soft music playing in the background, their voices echoed as they were moving in the room. Elisa smiled. She loved dancing and singing; but she unfortunately she was only able to do one of those. When she was little, she always dreamed of singing. In the orphanage, she wanted to join the other kids in the choir, but the matrons wouldn't even let her in the room when they rehearsed. She had to sneak up in the attic, from where she could see them through the air-shaft. Dozens of voices in unison, singing her favourite classics.

A lonely tear escaped her eye as memories flooded her. She fixed her gaze on the television, trying not to get lost in the reminiscence. Her childhood wasn't a happy place to go back to. The creature stirred next to her, sensing the sadness that overcame her. Elisa looked up at him, and wiped her eyes. _It's all right. I'm all right_ , she signed. _I just like this movie very much_. The creature's gills perked up as the music got a little louder. The woman and the man on the screen stopped singing, and continued their dance in a garden.

_Listen to the music_ , Elisa signed, and closed her eyes. She tapped her feet on the floor, moving them to the rhythm of the music. She was drumming on her thighs with her fingers, her head gently swaying left and right. The creature stared at her with wonder in his eyes. Elisa smiled as she looked back at him. _Music is beautiful._

The creature glanced at the television, and then back at Elisa. The music continued, an endless flow of notes swirling around them. Elisa pointed at her ears. _I love listening to music_. Then she pointed at her feet. _And dancing._

The creature repeated the sign for dancing. Elisa nodded towards the television. _I could never dance like them. But I always try my best._

He seemed to be lost in his thoughts for a minute, but then he stood abruptly, and held out a hand for Elisa. She looked at him, puzzled. The creature repeated the sign for dancing, and stepped closer to Elisa. _You want to dance?_ she asked him, amused. The creature nodded. _Very well_. Elisa stood and grabbed his hand; she took a step forward, her upper body pressing to him. _Can you dance?_ Elisa asked the creature. He shook his head, and then pointed at the television. _So, you want to do what they are doing?_ The creature nodded.

Elisa smiled. She raised her arm, and held the creature's hand. Elisa guided him so his other hand was now placed on the small of her back. She started swaying them back and forth to the beat of the music. The creature found the rhythm pretty quickly, and he started moving more and more confidently. He nudged Elisa with his hip, peaking at the television screen. The couple in the movie was now twirling around a rose bush; the creature tightened his hold and started making small steps forward. Elisa smiled encouragingly. They half walked, half swayed around in the living room, unable to look away from the other.

Elisa wanted this moment to last forever. The creature’s moves were smooth; it felt like they were swimming around in the air, their bodies in perfect sync, their moves complementing each other, like it was meant to be. The creature pushed her, like the man did to the woman in the movie, and with a flick of his wrist twirled her around. Elisa laughed, tears of joy in her eyes. No one has ever danced with her like this. No one has ever made her feel so special.

The creature then pulled her back, the music now slowing down. Pressed closely together, Elisa raised to the tip of her toes and laid her head on the creature's shoulder, burying her nose in the crook of his neck.

The creature put both his arms around Elisa, his chin resting on the top of her head. Elisa closed her eyes and continued the gentle swaying, listening to the creature's calm and familiar heartbeat. Her own heart thumped in her chest, nervous and excited and happy all at once. 

Neither of them noticed when the music finally ended.


	7. Date night

The weather was nice and chilly that night. Elisa looked out into the street in both directions before crossing the road. In one hand she was carrying a basket; with her other hand, she was holding onto the creature, guiding him on the pavement. This was most certainly an unsafe idea, she wasn't even sure if she thought is through completely. But she had to do it. For him. 

She dressed him in boots and a long black coat and a hat. Although there weren't many people out that late, she couldn't risk the creature being recognized. As they hurried down the sidewalk towards the Patapsco river, she tried not to panic. Maybe this really was a bad idea. Maybe they should have stayed home.

No, Elisa thought. Just keep going.

The river was a good ten-minute walk from her apartment. She couldn't help but laugh a little at how clumsily the creature walked. He never wore boots before, and he probably never will again; Elisa could barely find a pair that fit him. But he managed just fine, for someone not used to walking a lot on two feet. If it worked out well, he will soon be in the water anyway. This was going to be the perfect date.

A date! Elisa chuckled, as she helped the creature step over a ledge. His eyes scanned the environment from under the hat; he almost looked like a child, seeing the big world for the first time. His eyes big, his nostrils flaring as they were getting closer to the river. Elisa balanced the basket on her arm as she herself climbed after the creature. As she looked over her shoulder to see if anyone was following them, she tripped on something. For a second Elisa thought she would fall, and she braced herself for the impact, but it never came. Instead, she found herself embraced by two strong arms. The creature held her and gently put her back on her feet.

_Thank you_ , she signed with shaking hands, looking into his beautiful eyes. She felt her cheeks turning red. The creature looked away, but she felt him moving even closer than before. She smiled to herself.

After a few yards, the creature suddenly halted. The Patapsco river was right there, right in front of them. The creature's eyes opened wide as he turned to face Elisa. They were standing on a dock, hidden behind some old boats; Elisa chose this particular place, because not many people came here, not even in daylight, let alone at night. She smiled at the creature, put down the basket and proceeded to undress him. Removing the boots was even more difficult than putting them on, but finally she freed the creature of his disguise. He kept his eyes on her, only a few glances at the water; he seemed unsure of why they were there. Elisa folded the coat and laid it on the boots, putting the hat on top of it.

_Go ahead_ , she signed, pointing at the river. The creature looked at her, a puzzled expression on his face. _I want you to be happy. You can swim_ , Elisa repeated the words _happy_ and _swim_ , for those were the ones the creature most likely understood. He still didn't move, a look on his face that was closer to disbelief than anything else. _Go_ , Elisa signed again. She sat down on the dock, her feet dangling above the water. _I'll wait here._

The creature finally took one step ahead. Elisa nodded, encouraging him to keep moving. He took another step, and then a third one; then, with one jump, he disappeared into the water. Elisa laughed as his lean body splashed into the river, the bottom of her skirt getting wet. Not expecting him to come up anytime soon, Elisa grabbed the basket, and pulled out an old lunchbox and a few napkins. She prepared a small picnic, but now she wasn't so sure the creature was interested in it. She could see his shining scales right under the surface of the water, coming up here and there. As she watched him dive down again, she popped half of a boiled egg into her mouth, the other half waiting for him.

This date might just turn out all right.

After about twenty minutes, the creature's head popped up near Elisa's feet. Even at the dim light of the street lamps, Elisa could see his body glowing the brightest gold ever. She knew gold meant happiness, and his happiness meant her happiness. The creature reached out of the water, his hand moving to touch her ankle. She shivered as his cold fingers brushed her skin. The creature's eyes lit up, his chest turning pink; probably the same colour as her own cheeks, Elisa thought. She held up the other half of the boiled egg, and the creature obediently opened his mouth. She fed him the egg, and couldn't resist caressing his face. They looked into each other's eyes, Elisa sitting on the dock and the creature floating in front of her; it was just him and her, the night, the water, and nothing else.

When the creature finally flipped back and disappeared into the river again, she just sighed blissfully. She pulled a blanket out of her basket, and made herself comfortable on the wooden boards.

There was no rush.

The night was theirs.


	8. Kiss me

Elisa didn't bother to turn on the light when she stepped into the bathroom. She held her book under her arm as the placed the candelabra with three lit candles on a stool next to the bathtub. The creature was sitting in there, watching her. Elisa smiled at him. She sat down on a pillow she placed there earlier, leaning against the side of the bathtub. She opened her book and continued to read the chapter she couldn't finish before dinner.

The creature let her read in peace for a good ten minutes before he slowly inched closer, curious of what she was doing. As he peaked over her shoulder, a few drops of water landed on Elisa's neck. Realizing what he was up to, she pointed at certain sentences and signed them to the creature, not sure if he understood them or not, but he seemed to be enjoying it. He made excited noises when he recognised words or even just letters; the soft growls reminded Elisa of a happily purring cat. At some point Elisa just started signing everything as she read the chapters, but the creature was no longer interested in figuring out the meaning of it. He just stared at Elisa's hand, mesmerized by the elegant movements of her long fingers.

She continued reading until the candles almost burned down, then she closed the book. She turned to look at the creature; his face was so close to hers she almost jumped. He kept staring at her fingers, waiting for them to move. Elisa shook her head fondly, and pointed at the book. _More?_ she asked. The creature didn't look up, just reached out of the water, and his webbed fingers touched hers. Her body trembled at the contact, the creature wetting her shirt with his arm. Elisa forgot to breathe as the creature leaned closer and pulled up her hand so he could observe it from a better angle. He now took her hand into both of his and just started playing with her fingers, pulling them apart and pushing back together, probing them, turning her hand upside down and poking at her palm. That made her chuckle, and the creature suddenly let go of her, afraid that he did something wrong.

Elisa reached after him and intertwined their fingers again, holding them tightly. _It's okay,_ she signed. The creature's eyes caught hers, and for a moment Elisa saw fireworks and sparks in them. His eyes were so beautiful and enthralling, she could've kept looking into them for an eternity. Name any colour and they could have been found in there. Elisa wasn't even able to comprehend how something so utterly perfect could exist. And she was lucky enough that this perfect being was right in front of her. That she could see it. That she could touch it. That she could feel it.

That it belonged to her.

The creature leaned an inch closer, and that was enough for Elisa. She spent many nights alone in her room wondering about a moment like this. So many nights of solitude, fantasizing about a man she never met but knew some day would. About his strong arms around her waist, about his delicious mouth on hers. But none of those dreams could have been compared to this. The creature froze for a moment as Elisa finally closed the distance between them, her lips only brushing his at first, slowly and ever so gently; then all at once she pushed her tongue into the creature's mouth, searching for his. She hadn't done this before, and the creature most certainly hadn't either. But in that moment, it felt like something fell into place. This was meant to be, Elisa was sure of it now. They kissed like they've done it a thousand and one times before, their tongues dancing the ancient dance of life that created the earth, the sun, the sky, the rivers, and everything around them. She reached up to touch his face, and the creature instinctively did the same. They were no longer the woman and the creature: they were just two halves finally becoming one.

Elisa didn't want to break the kiss, but she knew she had to. Leaning away from the creature, she gently stroked his face before letting go of him. She saw a tiny glimpse of sadness in his eyes as they pulled apart. The creature sat back in the water, watching as Elisa stood and blew the candles. She packed her book and pillow on the stool, and turned her back on him, to take a deep breath and get herself together. She couldn't show it, but that kiss moved something in her, something she never knew existed. All her life she was surrounded by nothing but loneliness, and now there was this flawless thing tearing down her walls, showing her at last what it feels like to be truly alive. And they could do so much more.

 _Good night_ , she signed quickly as she headed for the door. Maybe one day, she thought.

Maybe one day.


	9. Alike

Elisa was standing in front of the mirror, staring at her own reflection, not sure if she should do this or not. They've done the reversed version many times before, when they went out in public and he had to put on clothes she got for him, but this was something new. Elisa figured he would be confused at first, but maybe he'll like it. Maybe he'll feel better if she looked a bit more like him. Elisa was cleaning the dressing room at the local theatre a few days ago, that's where she found the dress. Cleaning at the theatre was an extra shift she took so she could buy some more potted plants to put in the bathroom. The plants made the creature really happy: anytime Elisa brought home a new one, his chest started glowing gold. He would climb out of the bathtub just so he can watch her setting the plant on a chair, on the floor, or in the window. Sometimes she would chuckle at that: he was like a supervisor making sure she did things the right way.

Elisa turned around to see the back of her dress. Should she do it or not? Would it be weird? The long dress had large spangles on it, in blue and green colours. When she saw it hanging in the old, dusty closet, she didn't hesitate for a second before she pulled it off the hanger and stuffed it into her bag. It looked so much like his skin, she couldn't resist putting it on. She ran her hands over her own body, her fingers playing with the spangles. Wouldn't it be nice if she could just become like him? If her skin could just merge with the dress? She wondered for a second how would her life be then. Together they could conquer any river, and nothing would stand in their way.

She turned around one more time. The dress was a tiny bit long for her, the bottom of it hanging just below her ankles, the long sleeves covering her wrists. As the light fell onto it, the entire dress looked like it had tiny diamonds on it. For the first time in her life, Elisa felt beautiful. She no longer had doubts about it. She's going to show herself to him.

Lost in her thoughts, Elisa didn't hear the bathroom door creak. She didn't realise the creature was standing right behind her, until she looked up and saw him in the mirror. She spun around, a little bit scared at first, but then she sighed and stepped closer to him.

The creature stared at her with his eyes wide open. Following her every move, he looked stunned. Elisa held out her hand, signing a shy _Hello_ to him. _I hope I didn't scare you_ , she added. Elisa smiled at him, and took another step forward. The creature's eyes scanned her from head to toe, and then all the way back. He seemed to have a difficult time understanding why Elisa looked the way she did. She just stood there, waiting for his reaction, giving him time to adjust to the situation. The creature then reached towards her, his fingers touching the scales on the dress. With a puzzled look on his face, he raised his other hand, and pointed at Elisa. She smiled. _Yes_ , she signed. _This is me. It's a dress._ The creature tilted his head, not understanding the word dress. Elisa decided to leave the explanation of clothing items for another day; instead, she pointed at her cardigan that was hanging on the door, and signed the words _dress_ again, to make him realise that dresses are things you wear on your body. He seemed to be thinking about it for a second, and then pointed at the long black coat Elisa made him wear the other day.

_Yes_ , she signed. _That is also a dress. Good job!_ She touched his chest and smiled at him encouragingly. _You are very smart._ The creature's chest lit up in a light pink colour, and then turned into deep gold.

Inching closer to her, the creature laid both of his hands on her arms. His webbed fingers running through the blue and green spangles, his eyes following the movement. Elisa laid out her arm and aligned it with his. _Look_ , she signed. _It's the same. We are the same_. She reached under his chin and tilted his head upwards, so he was looking into her eyes. Elisa repeated the word _same_ to him. It was important to her than he understood it. Elisa often caught the creature looking at himself in the mirror, trying to figure out what makes him different from everybody else. He always hung his head low, like he was ashamed of himself for not being alike. Elisa wanted him to understand that being different did not mean he was less, or worse than them.

For her, he was worth a lot more than anyone or anything.

Elisa pointed at her dress, and then at him, signing the word _same_ again. The creature stared at her, still trying to understand what was going on. His eyes softening with each passing minute, the corner of his mouth turning slightly upward; that was probably the closest to a smile that Elisa ever got from the creature. Beaming proudly, she took his hand in hers and held it tight. Elisa pulled him towards her, now both of them facing the mirror, leaning into each other. They could finally see themselves for who they were: two beautiful creatures, standing up against the judgement of the cruel world.

For he was her and she was him.


	10. Warm me up

Elisa sighed as she pulled the old, tattered blanket tighter around herself. It was the coldest night of the year, and of course the heating in her apartment just stopped working. Probably because she didn't have enough money to pay last month's bill. The wind was howling outside, a ruthless, compelling force of nature, trying to breach through the walls and the windows. Elisa exhaled deeply. How is she going to make it through winter, when she doesn't even know how to make it through this week? As of now, she felt like the odds were not in her favour.

At nights, she always dreamt of a better life: a big house, chickens in the backyard, enough money to pay for everything she needed, and the creature, living with her, in peace and happiness. They would never have to fear anyone or anything ever again.

Sounds of cheerful splashing caused her to come out of her reverie. She smiled. At least the creature was content, sitting in a tub full of hot water. She made sure the water never got cold; although he used to live in a river, which was significantly colder than a bathtub, he still seemed to like the warm better. If this was what he needed, Elisa happily obliged.

A sudden thought came to Elisa's mind. She shrugged the blanket of off her shoulders, and headed towards the bathroom. The creature stopped moving when he spotted her, the water gently rocking around him. Elisa stepped next to the tub, and lowered her ice-cold hand into the water. It was so warm that the skin on her fingers started to burn, but she didn't move.

_Would you mind if I joined you?_ Elisa asked the creature, signing the words slowly; then to make sure he understood, she pointed at herself, and then at the tub. His eyes followed the direction she was pointing, contemplating for a second. Then he reached for Elisa's hand that was still hanging into the water, and tugged at it.

Elisa slipped out of her shoes, her eyes never leaving the creature's. This was really happening! She is going to climb into the bathtub with him.

She slowly took off her clothes, taking her time, one piece at a time. The creature had a curious look on his face: he never saw Elisa fully naked before. He looked so innocent and so pure, like a newborn, exploring the world around him for the first time. He watched as Elisa got rid of her blouse and her skirt. Elisa stopped before taking her underwear off, considering perhaps not to remove them after all, but one look at him, and all her doubts flew away.

When she slid into the tub, and her naked skin touched his for the first time, Elisa felt like electricity hit her. The creature immediately put her arms around her, like a guardian protecting a treasure, his sharp nails scratching her back. Elisa placed her palm on his chest, feeling every heartbeat of his. Her own heart was racing, her cheeks turned red, but not because of the temperature of the water. She wanted to close her eyes and stay there forever, in the arms of the creature, surrounded by the very source of life.

Suddenly she felt his arms moving, as he tried to figure out what made her skin different than his. The creature looked down at her, one of his hands moving towards her chest. Elisa raised her head, and with a smile on her face, linked her fingers with his, pulling them onto her breasts. The creature's chest slowly started changing colours, from a soft pink to deep purple, gold lines running through his scales. Elisa released his hand, letting it do the exploring on its own. Instead, she turned slightly so her upper body now aligned with his; raising herself slightly, she closed her eyes and pressed her lips onto the creature's mouth.

 

He was surprised at first, his hands stopping their movements. He didn't hesitate for long, though, and he pulled Elisa closer, opening his mouth just wide enough so his tongue could pry her lips open. Elisa's body was trembling from excitement. She put her arms around his neck, her breasts pushing into his chest, feeling a deep growling coming from the inside. They both shivered as their tongues waltzed around to an indescribable rhythm, their bodies pressing together, creating a warm, wet fusion.

When they finally parted, Elisa laid her head on the creature's chest and sighed contently.

She didn't miss central heating after all.

 


	11. Greetings

Elisa ran around the living room excitedly, adjusting the chairs, the tablecloth, and anything she found to be slightly crooked or out of place. This was the first time since the creature lived with her that she invited people over for dinner. And not just any people. Two very important people, who helped her through some tough times; two people, who she could always count on. Two people she could proudly call her friends. The bathroom door was open, and the creature was peaking over the edge of the tub. He didn't know what was going on, but he sensed how excited Elisa was, and he couldn't help but feel the same.

Elisa had her doubts about tonight's dinner, but she figured it was worth a try. The creature had already befriended Giles, and he seemed to be okay with Zelda, too. She explained it to him that both Giles and Zelda provided help for them when they needed it, and therefore they were grateful to them. He looked like he understood, or at least recognised that they were to cause them no harm. That should be enough.

Elisa prepared a nice meal, trying to make the best out of what she had, which was unfortunately not much. She bought all kinds of vegetables at the night's market, and made a rich salad, with a huge amount of boiled eggs on top. She also baked bread, albeit a small one, because she ran out of flour. She couldn't make any dessert, but hoped that Giles and Zelda won't mind it.

Five minutes after six o'clock, the doorbell rang. The creature jumped out of the bathtub and half-hiding behind the doorframe, glanced at Elisa. _It's okay_ , Elisa signed to him, heading for the door. _It's Giles and Zelda_. The creature still had some trouble recognising Zelda's name, but he did understand Giles'; he visibly relaxed, the bristled scales on his back falling back into place. When Elisa opened the door, he took a step back, looking a tiny bit scared, until he saw Giles smiling at him.

"Hello," he said to Elisa, then waved to the creature. "And hello to you, too." Zelda appeared right behind him, hugging Elisa tightly with one hand. In the other, she was carrying a plate.

"I hope you don't mind," Zelda said to Elisa, "but I made an apple pie. I know you like it."

Elisa beamed at her friend, signing a _thank you_ to her. She took the plate and brought it to the kitchen. As Zelda took a chair and sat at the table, Giles walked to the bathroom door, where the creature was standing, still hiding behind the frame. Giles smiled at him, and extended his hand. Zelda looked at Elisa, who shook her head.

"He doesn't know how to shake hands," Zelda told Giles.

"Well then, we should probably teach him!" The man glanced at Elisa. "Shouldn't we?"

Elisa thought about it for a minute, and then shrugged. _We can try_ , she signed.

Elisa stood in front of Giles, who grabbed her hand. They both looked at the creature, who stared back at them, a bit perplexed. Elisa frowned. How should she explain it to him? She pointed at their linked hands. _This is a greeting. Greeting means... to say 'hello' to someone. This,_ she pointed at their hands again for emphasis, _also means greeting_. The creature looked at Elisa's hand, and scrunched up his eyes. Elisa and Giles stayed as they were, waiting for him to figure out what they were doing. Finally, the creature looked up, and signed the letter _H_. Elisa grinned, and let go of Giles' hand to touch the creature's face. _Yes!_ she signed. _You did good! This was a 'hello'._ Then she turned to Giles. _He understood._

Giles smiled, and clapped his hands. "Fantastic! Now let's have some food, shall we? We earned it!"

Elisa nodded, smiling at Giles, and lead the creature to the table. Zelda and Giles sat on one side, Elisa and the creature on the other. She helped him get closer to the table, and then put a napkin in his lap. The creature looked at her puzzled, but he didn't move the piece of cloth. Zelda grinned at them. "You sure do have a thing for this guy," she said. Elisa blushed, and made a shooing motion with her hand.

Giles laughed. "You're just jealous. The men you have dated were not half as sophisticated as him."

"Shut your mouth, old man!"

"Just admit it!"

"I'm not asking again!"

Elisa smiled at them bickering. She missed this, she missed hanging out with her friends. Of course, she was happy with the creature, but sometimes it was nice to have a bigger company.

The creature kept looking back at forth between Giles and Zelda, until he noticed the boiled eggs on the top of the salad bowl. From that point on, his attention was occupied for the rest of the evening.


	12. Eggs

The streets were surprisingly packed for a Thursday night. She didn't think there would be this many people out there. Elisa held the creature's arm tightly, so the crowd of people wouldn't sweep him away. It was probably not the best idea to bring him along for a quick shopping, but Elisa could tell that the creature was really bored sitting in the tub all day. She had no idea how to cheer him up; the television or a vinyl would usually do the trick, but not today. He seemed particularly sad and lonely, splashing around in the water the entire afternoon. She was planning on doing the groceries first thing in the morning, but the night’s market was going to be just fine. She made him wear the same clothes as the other times when she brought him out: the long black coat, the boots and the hat. He almost looked like a detective, wearing all black, with the hat pulled into his face.

The night's market consisted only of a couple of stalls. It was open for an hour or two every night. This was the place where sellers brought all the stuff that they couldn't sell at full price anymore during the day's market: food that would go wrong soon, or stuff that were chipped, scratched or otherwise slightly damaged, but still useable. Elisa liked the night's market, because she could buy a lot of things for half the price. Buying things at half price was important, since with the creature in her life, she really needed to count every penny. Water costed more than she would've liked, but water was important for him, so it was also important for her. She would rather not eat than deny him the very thing that gives him life.

But most importantly now, she needed to buy eggs for breakfast, because the creature was hungrier than ever lately.

As they walked through the mass of people gathered around the stall that was selling sweets, the creature raised his head, smelling something in the air. A couple of stalls away they were selling flowers that bloomed almost completely and would drop their petals probably in a day. Elisa quickly touched the creature's neck to warn him not to raise his head that high. Although the dim street lights were in their favour, they still had to be very careful; and also, very quick, for they had less than thirty minutes now before the creature had to get back in the water. Elisa spotted the stall where the dairies were displayed, and linking her arm with the creature's, she headed there.

The man who was standing at the stall said hello to Elisa, who raised her hand to wave to the old man. The man knew her, and knew that she couldn’t speak, because she visited him almost every week to buy eggs. The man was kind to her and in return she was kind to him; people didn't really do that anymore. The old man started to develop the habit of saving Elisa a basket of fresh eggs instead of the almost rotten ones he had on his stall, and still gave it to her for half the price. Elisa couldn't be thankful enough. When she reached for the eggs, the creature quietly hissed next to her; almost as if he felt jealous. He didn't want Elisa to smile at the old man. Elisa tightened her grip on his arm even more to calm him down. The creature hissed one last time, and then turned his head away. Elisa thanked the old man for the eggs and put some money on his stall, then guided the creature back into the crowd.

The eggs safely placed in her bag, Elisa reached for the creature's face to make him look at her. _Hey,_ she signed. _Don't be like this. He is a kind man._ The creature's eyes lit up at the word _kind_. This was a word he knew quite well, it was one of the first words that Elisa taught him. _Kind people deserve to be treated well._ The creature lifted his hand and clumsily signed the letter G. Elisa nodded, smiling. _Yes, like Giles. Giles is also a kind man._

Elisa could tell the creature still felt bad about the incident with the cat, but there was nothing to do with that now. Giles wasn't angry with the creature though, he understood that he didn't mean to do it. Giles was indeed very kind, and they both tried to treat him as well as they could.

They walked away from the market, quickening their pace, because the thirty minutes was almost up. When they got back to the apartment, Elisa fished her keys out of her bag and let themselves in. She quickly placed her bag on the kitchen table and helped the creature take off the clothes. She smiled shyly as she kneeled down to take his boots, running her fingers through the scales on his shin. His toes webbed the same way his hands were, his ankle beautifully shaped, his thighs muscular. Elisa sighed, and guided the wobbling creature back into the bathroom. He dove in the bathtub headfirst, splashing a good amount of water on Elisa, who just laughed. The creature's head popped up, his eyes glowing bright. He loved seeing Elisa laugh.

Elisa sat down on the edge of the tub, gently patting the creature's head. _I'll make dinner,_ she signed.

The creature thought about it for a second, and then held up his fingers, not quite correctly signing the letter E, at which Elisa just grinned.

_Yes. Eggs._


	13. A spoonful of eggnog

Elisa sat on the floor in the living room, next to the Christmas tree. The creature was sitting in front of her, his legs sprawled out. Elisa chuckled at how they must look like from the outside: a mute woman trying to explain to a fishman in sign language what ice cream is. So far, she managed to make him understand that ice cream was a kind of food, but colder than anything he ate before. He also understood that this was made by Zelda.

Elisa kind of got stuck at the point where she wanted to tell him what is tastes like. How does one explain to a fishman what eggnog is? She tried to sign him the word egg, but he got so excited at the thought of food that she actually had to boil some eggs for him, because he wouldn't stop pointing at the fridge where he knew the eggs were stored. He was getting more and more familiar and comfortable with the human life, and Elisa could not have been prouder of him.

But now she had to get him to try the eggnog flavoured ice cream.

She gave another go at the egg-related explanation. She pointed at the egg, and then signed that eggnog is something that has raw eggs in it. The creature seemed to get confused by the word _raw_. Elisa then proceeded to crack an egg in a bowl she had there in case they had to take this road, and then she put the raw egg and a boiled egg in front of him, so he can compare the two. She figured he would now understand that raw egg is used as an ingredient to other foods (although she didn't exactly used the word _ingredient_ ), while boiled eggs go straight into the stomach. He observed the two eggs thoroughly, and when Elisa pointed at his tummy, he took it as a sign that he can eat the boiled egg. He popped it into his mouth, at which Elisa just shook her head, smiling.

_Patience is a word for another day,_ she signed rather to herself than to him. When they established what raw eggs were, she then described eggnog to him in the simplest words that he could probably understand. Words like _milk,_ _sugar_ or _drink_ were easy; others like _mixing_ or _whipping_ took some effort, but after about an hour Elisa declared that the mission was successful.

_Now,_ she signed to him, _we are going to eat ice cream that tastes like eggnog._

The creature scooted closer to her, looking into the plastic bowl in front of Elisa. The ice cream Zelda brought them had a soft beige colour, and to Elisa, it smelled like the perfect Christmas night. When she was a small girl, every Christmas the matrons at the orphanage would bring non-alcoholic eggnogs and a few lucky children would get to drink it. Of course, Elisa was never one of those children, but seeing how happy they were always made her happy as well. She could only hope the ice cream will make the creature happy.

She got a spoon in her hand and scooped up a little of the ice cream. She raised the spoon in front of his face and signed him to open his mouth. The creature obliged, and as Elisa pushed the spoon between his lips, his tongue curled around it, shivering at the touch of cold. Elisa giggled. The creature lapped at the ice cream, trying to figure out if he liked it or not. Elisa waited, in the meanwhile grabbing another spoon, and tasting the ice cream herself.

It was even better than she hoped it would be, Zelda could make wonders in her kitchen. Elisa was definitely going to invite Giles for a bite as well.

The creature looked like he decided that the ice cream was indeed good. He pointed at the bowl and made a grabbing motion towards the spoon. Elisa handed him the spoon, curious of what he's going to do with it. Just like he saw Elisa doing it, he stuck the spoon in the ice cream, and tried to get a big piece out of it. Elisa touched his hand, laughing; she then placed her hand on his, guiding him, showing him how to properly use the spoon.

The creature paid extra attention to her motions. Elisa noticed that whenever he really liked something, or whenever there was something he was really interested in, he made an effort to better understand it. Elisa had to refrain herself from hugging him, mostly because she feared that the entire bowl of ice cream would end up on the floor. A few more tries, and the creature was able to scoop out a bit of ice cream and pop it into his mouth, all by himself. Then one more. And then one more.

Looks like there won't be any left for Giles after all.


	14. Good morning!

Elisa woke up with a smile on her face. She dreamt of that house again: the big one, with a garden and the farm animals in the background. At least a dozen chickens to produce eggs for the creature. What a lovely life would that be!

That house appeared in her dreams more and more often, and she loved it a little bit more each time. She spent a few minutes just lying in her bed, stretching her arms above her head. It was nice and warm under the blanket; the only thing making it better would've been the fishman there with her. But he was content in his bathtub, now surrounded by little green potted plants she bought him. Her bathroom started to turn into a mini jungle.

Elisa yawned and finally convinced herself to get out of bed. She needed to get to work soon – rare times when she had the day shift–, but before that, she had to make sure the creature had everything he would need for the day; enough food, that is. Boiling eggs was now a regular part of her morning routine; sometimes she didn't even remember turning on the stove, it became second nature to her. She put a bathrobe over her nightgown and headed for the kitchen.

To Elisa's surprise the bathroom door was wide open, a few drops of water leading from there all the way to the fridge.

The creature was standing in the kitchen, right in front of the stove, with three eggs in his hands. He looked a little bit lost, just holding the eggs between his webbed fingers, staring at a cooking pot that Elisa left there last night. She stood quietly, waiting for his next move. What was he trying to do anyway? Was he trying to boil the eggs himself?

Elisa grinned. The fishman never ceased to amaze her. He watched her cook before, ever so curious of the flames under the pot, wondering why Elisa put the eggs in the hot water instead of just giving it straight to him. He didn't yet know they were raw, but since she told him about the eggnog and how raw eggs were different than boiled eggs, he seemed to be paying a lot more attention to all food making processes.

The creature then decided to put the eggs in the pot, like he saw Elisa doing it. He pushed the pot a bit to the left, so it covered one of the burners completely; but then he stopped, realizing that something was missing: there were no flames. He knew there should have been, so he pushed the pot back, and leaned closer to the burner, smelling it. At that moment Elisa decided to step in, not too keen on watching her apartment burn down. The creature noticed her and jumped back from the stove, knowing instantly that he shouldn't have done that. But Elisa smiled at him, signing an _okay_ to let him know he didn't do anything wrong. She reached for the box of matches and showed it to him. _This makes fire,_ she told him, and moved it towards the burner. Before she could light it though, the creature placed his hand on her arm, stopping her, shaking his head.

Elisa looked at him, surprised. She blew at the match and dropped it in the trashcan. She wanted to ask the fishman what was wrong, but he was already telling her. He pointed at the pot with the eggs in it, and then at the sink. That was when Elisa realized they forgot to fill the pot with water. A smile spread on her face. She took the pot and handed it over to the creature. _You're right,_ she signed, _we must put water in it._ She pointed at the sink and told the creature how to fill up the pot, acting out every move. He almost dropped the pot twice trying to fit in under the tap. Elisa chuckled to herself: her fishman was so adorably nervous. He wanted to do this right, he wanted to show Elisa he could help her.

When the pot was finally filled, Elisa grabbed another match and lit the burner on the stove. The creature placed the pot on top of it, watching as the tiny bubbles started popping up on the surface of the water. They stood there together, waiting for the eggs to be ready. Elisa glanced at the creature, who couldn't have been prouder of himself. He made food! She pushed their arms together, leaning slightly to his side.

Maybe next time he could do the dishes, too.


	15. Cake

Elisa and the creature stood in the kitchen, their hands covered in flour. It was Giles' birthday dinner tonight, and Elisa figured they should bring him a nice cake. Once they established what birthdays were, the creature was more than happy to join her in the process of baking. Elisa explained to him that Giles loved birthday cakes and that it would make him really happy. The creature liked Giles, and he liked when Giles was happy. He let Elisa tie an apron around him, which she found very amusing; then they gathered all the ingredients on the kitchen counter, while Elisa was trying to explain what each of those were.

She poured flour in a bowl and added the baking powder. _You need to mix them together, like this._ She gave the creature a wooden spoon and helped him adjust it in his hand. _Put it in the bowl, and just keep stirring it._ She watched him work for a couple of minutes, and then proceeded to crack a few eggs, adding them to the bowl one after the other, making sure they are all fully incorporated into the mix. The creature's hand stopped, not quite understanding what Elisa was doing _. It's okay_ , she signed. _Keep going! This all goes into the batter._ She poured a little milk into the mixture and motioned him to add more force. _The batter has to be smooth._

The creature seemed to like this task; he concentrated on stirring the wooden spoon, making sure none of the batter gets out of the bowl. Elisa smiled as he watched him work. These moments were her favourites, when they could engage in some domestic activity together. Times like these reminded her that life could be good, if you made it good. She had learned a long time ago to appreciate even the smallest things that made her happy. And if something, or someone, made her happy, she needed to hold onto it.

The creature tilted the bowl so Elisa can peak into it. Both agreed that the batter was now in a good enough condition to put in the oven. Elisa held the round baking pan in place with one hand, while with her other hand she instructed the creature how to butter and flour the pan. After it was done, she poured the batter into the pan and then smoothed it with the spoon. When they've finished, she placed the pan into the oven and then clapped her hands. _Good job!_ She laughed at the creature, who stood with both his hands in the air, butter smeared all over his fingers.

While they were waiting for the cake, she helped the fishman clean his hands, and then she went on explaining him that they're going to have to prepare the icing as well. That part she took upon herself, while the creature stood behind her and watched as she whipped egg whites and mixed it with sugar and butter, also scraping a little bit of vanilla into the bowl. When it was done, she bent down to check on the cake. It was almost ready.

The rest of the process went easier than expected. When the cake cooled off a little bit, Elisa showed the creature how to cover it with the cream. She expertly frosted the sides, and then let the creature cover the top. Satisfied with the result, Elisa grabbed an old cake decorating bag, and filled it with the remaining cream, to which she already added a tiny spoon of cocoa powder. With the bag, she created tiny meringue shapes on the top of the cake. The creature leaned closer and smelled the cake, the veins on his back flashing up in gold. If Elisa's body could do that, it would have. The cake indeed looked and smelled delicious.

_Let's go to Giles now!_ she signed, taking the apron off the fishman.

The creature took a quick dip in the tub before heading over to Giles' apartment. When they arrived, Zelda was already there, helping Giles to set the table.

“How wonderful! We're all here!” Giles exclaimed, clasping Elisa's hand. "And what have you brought?" he asked, looking over her shoulder. The creature stood awkwardly behind Elisa, carrying the cake on a nice silver plate.

"A cake! Look, Zelda, they made me a cake!" Giles laughed, taking the plate from the fishman. "Goodness me, this looks beautiful."

The rest of the night was pretty quiet. Giles made them a delicious carbonara, and Zelda brought champagne. The creature took a sip, but his frown indicated that he'd rather stick with water. The cake he and Elisa baked met with success, Giles alone ate almost half of it. Elisa smiled, holding the creature's hand under the table.

Having a nice dinner with friends. Eating the cake they made together.

It's the small things.


	16. unhappy

we walk around the cave her cave she called it a name we don't understand but the woman said it is her cave and we know it is the woman's cave

and the woman is not here but there are things here and we are curious and we want to know what they are

the woman says we do not touch those but we need to know it is our nature we need to see everything and touch and know and we explore the cave

we know the food place and we know the fire place and we know the water place and we like the water place

the woman is happy when there is food in the food place and the woman is unhappy when food is not in the food place and we are unhappy when the woman is unhappy our woman is unhappy and we want her to be happy

we see the flat plate and it is round and dark and it makes happy sounds when the woman touches it

it is like us

but the woman is not here and the flat plate makes no happy sounds

we like those happy sounds

we go there and touch it with our fingers but the happy sounds are not coming

and we touch it again and no happy sounds but we want the happy sounds

where are the happy sounds

the happy sounds come from the flat plate they must be in the flat plate

we touch the flat plate and pull it and we search for the happy sounds and it makes an unhappy sound and we know the woman will be unhappy and we don't like that

we put the flat plate back but it looks different there are two flat plates now and they are not round

and we hear noises beautiful noises and the woman is here

and she puts her flippers on the wall and they are pretty and the woman is pretty and we like the woman

our woman

and her face is happy and she comes to us and she touches us and we make happy colours and the woman touches the two flat plates and she doesn't touch us and we want the woman to touch us and we want to make happy colours

and her happy face is not happy

her face is unhappy and we make sad colours

and the woman looks at us and her hands move quickly and her hands and fingers are unhappy and she drops the flat plates to our flippers and we look at the flat plates and the flat plates are sad and the woman is sad and we are sad

and we are sorry and the woman is walking away from us and we don't like that

and we go to the woman our woman our unhappy woman and we want to make our woman happy but she doesn't look at us and we are sad we are sad we are sad

and the woman pulls the flippers from the wall and she puts them on her feet and she goes to the door and she leaves the cave and her hands are not moving and we don't know we don't know we are sad and we don't know

and we take the flat plates and we put it together and it is good again and then we put it to the happy thing to make happy sounds to make our woman happy happy and the flat plates don't make happy sounds and there are two flat plates and no happy sounds

and we are sad

we are sad

and our woman is sad

and we don't know

we don't know

and we are sad


	17. happy

we sit in the middle of the cave and we wait for the woman to come back and the cave is dark and the woman is not here

and we sit in the middle of the cave until the bad feeling comes and we have to go back to the water because the water makes us happy but we are not happy because the woman is not here and we don't know

and the cave is empty and we are sad

and our woman is sad and she is not here in the cave and the cave is sad

we are sad

and the flat plates are not good

the flat plates are sad and there is no happy sound

we go to the water place and the water is cold and the water is sad and we are sad

and the little unhappy trees are lonely and we are lonely

we go to the food place and put the water and the food in the shiny hole and we make the fire and we make food for our woman and the food will make our woman happy

and the water makes the noises and the we put the food on the white plate and we put the white plate on the wood place and the woman is not here and the food is cold and we are lonely

we put the food in the food place like the woman does and we sit in the middle of the cave and we wait

 

we wait

we wait

we wait

 

the woman comes back and puts her flippers on the wall

and the woman is sad and she sits with us and we make sad colours

and she touches us and we make happy colours

the woman makes a happy face

and the woman moves her fingers and her fingers make sorry and we make sorry and the woman is here the woman is here the woman is here

we show the woman the food and she makes happy face and the woman shares the food with us and we make happy noises and the woman's fingers are happy

we must go to the water and it makes us happy and the woman makes warm water and comes with us in the water and she makes sorry and we make sorry and we are sorry and we know

and the woman touches us and we touch her we touch our woman and she smells happy and she touches us and water touches us and we touch water

we are happy

and the woman puts water on the small trees and the small trees are happy

we go back to the cave and the woman touches the flat plates and she makes an unhappy face and we are sorry

and the woman's fingers move and she puts another flat plate on the happy thing and the flat plate makes a happy happy happy sound and the woman is happy and we are happy

and the happy sound is here

our woman is here

and we are happy


	18. Happy birthday!

Giles spent hours decorating his living room for Elisa's birthday. He wanted to make this a special evening, for his most special friends. He remembered how Elisa used to be before _him_ : shy, tired, rarely seen during her days off. But since the creature has entered her life, she finally could be the person she was meant to be; her eyes glowed every time she looked at the fishman, her whole attitude changed, she was filled with joy and life. Giles secretly envied them. He never had such a relationship before, and he knew he probably never will. Both Elisa and the creature were unique, and thus their love extraordinary. Giles loved to see them together, it warmed his heart. They frequently came over for dinner, and Elisa invited Giles to their place as well. These small gatherings sort of became a new tradition between the three, sometimes four of them if Zelda could make it, so Giles thought he would add birthday parties to that mix. He loved birthday parties!

He prepared the cake himself, dropping water lilies made of marzipan on the top. He bought them especially for Elisa, for she developed a certain obsession with everything water-related. Giles thought it was adorable. The frosting had blue colour, and so did the cream. Giles had a friend working at a pastry nearby, and he helped him get the ingredients. Giles had never made a blue cake before, and he was incredibly proud of himself. He also got a present for Elisa: a very old, very rare edition of a Dorsey Brothers vinyl. Elisa loved jazz, as did Giles, and she also loved her old gramophone. Giles found the record in an antique's store, and he knew instantly that this is going to be perfect. The record had many classic Dorsey songs on it, including Giles' favourites, _"Sally of My Dreams"_ and _"With The Language Of Love On Your Lips."_ He was sure Elisa is going to jump out of her skin.

He also thought of buying something for the fishman, even though it was not his birthday. Did he have a birthday? He must have one! He needs a birthday. Giles made a mental note to talk with Elisa about that. They could just choose a day. Any day. Maybe a nice, warm summer day, so he can have a nice birthday swim in the river. Giles smiled at the thought of the fishman jumping into the Patapsco. He escorted Elisa and the creature once or twice to their "picnic" at the docks, and the creature was always visibly buzzing with excitement whenever he came near the water. Elisa explained it to Giles that for the creature, water meant more than just a natural environment: it was life, it was freedom, it was the most exquisite beauty that an ordinary person couldn't even comprehend. Giles had no doubt, especially after seeing him conquer the river. This is why he decided to get him a book full of pictures of the Amazon. Elisa told him that that's where the creature came from; Giles was a bit worried at first, because he didn't want him to feel too overwhelmed, but ultimately, he decided it would be nice to give that much back to him.

When he had everything done, Giles sat down on the couch, adjusting the neatly wrapped presents and the candles on the living room table. He also had the bathroom cleared out, for he knew the fishman will have to visit the bathtub in every half an hour or so. Giles sometimes wondered what it was like to be a fishman. Did he understand their world? Did he know what was happening around him? Did he understand them? Could he learn human language? He certainly made remarkable progress with sign language in a surprisingly short time. He also had a thing for boiled eggs, which Giles had yet to understand. But nevertheless, he did stock up a good amount of boiled eggs in his fridge, alongside the meal he prepared for Elisa and himself. He went all out, as Zelda would say. Unfortunately, she couldn't be here tonight, because her husband was sick, but she made Giles promise her that he will pass Zelda's best wishes to Elisa.

It was a little after seven o'clock when the doorbell rang. Elisa was wearing a pretty light blue dress; the fishman wasn't wearing clothes, but Giles was not too bothered by that. They wore their shirts and the fishman wore his scales. The three of them settled on the couch, as Giles handed his presents to Elisa and the creature with a short speech. The way her eyes lit up, and the enthusiasm with which she tore the wrapping made it all worth it. The tears of joy made Giles himself cry a little, but he blamed the flowers on the table and of course his pollen allergy. Elisa hugged the record to her chest, her fingers twisting in every direction, trying to thank him for it. Giles just waved her off, now both of them turning their attention to the fishman. He carefully tore through the wrapping paper with his claws, and then took out the book. He looked at its front and back cover, unsure of what to make of it. Elisa helped him, showing him how to open it and then explained the pictures to him. He seemed to recognise his former home, and soon became lost in the pages. Elisa smiled and signed to Giles that they should leave him be by himself for a bit. She ushered the old man to the gramophone and put her brand new old record under the pin. As the Dorsey Brothers started playing, she grabbed Giles' hand, and they started dancing in the middle of the room.

Giles laughed as he put her arm around Elisa, slowly waltzing around the fishman, who was observing the small details of a picture of the Amazon river.

They definitely should make birthday dinners a thing.


	19. The colour of our love

Elisa pulled the curtains to the side and opened the windows. It was a bright, sunny day; not too cold, just the perfect Sunday morning weather. She didn't have to work today, which meant she and the creature are going to spend the entire day together. But what were they going to do? Elisa sat at the kitchen table, picking at her omelette, while the creature was still sleeping in the bathtub. She thought about going to the market, but her wallet politely declined. Giles was meeting some friend, so they had to skip the picnic they had planned a few days ago. Besides watching the telly or listening to records, there wasn't much to do. Elisa's eyes fell on a stack of paper and a brown bag, and a grin spread on her face. That's it!

She washed her plate and fork and wiped her hand on her skirt. The brown paper bag on the counter contained a few brushes and watercolour paint, which she got from a friendly old woman at the library. She often caught Elisa looking at the artbooks, and the woman decided to surprise her with a little gift. Elisa liked painting and drawing, although she wasn't a huge talent. But that didn't really matter, she just enjoyed seeing the paint running on the paper, creating abstract forms and figures. Maybe the creature would like it as well! He showed interest in paintings, maybe he would like to try and create something of his own.

Elisa prepared everything before the creature woke up. She covered the kitchen table with old newspaper, filled plastic cups with water, and arranged the brushes on the table. When the fishman climbed out of the tub and headed for the kitchen for his breakfast, Elisa was sitting there, sketching with a pencil, smiling at him as she raised her head. Pointing at the counter, she told the fishman to fetch his eggs, and then sit across her at the table. The fishman did as she told him, curious of what Elisa had in mind. He popped an egg into his mouth, holding the rest in his hands.

_We're going to paint today._ Elisa excitedly pointed at the wall. _Pictures like those._

The fishman's eyes lit up; he stuffed all the remaining eggs in his mouth. He knew what _painting_ meant, paintings and art made him very excited. He poked at the brushes and peeked into the plastic cups. He watched intently as Elisa explained to him what the brushes were for and how to use them; she made a few strokes on a spare paper so the fishman can see how it works. He grabbed one of the bigger brushes and started smashing it into one of the boxes in which the paint was. Elisa chuckled and touched his arm to stop him.

_Water first,_ she signed, _and then the paint._ The fishman nodded apologetically, then did as he was instructed. Soon he had his first bright green stroke on the paper in front of him. He looked at it like the most precious piece of art in the entire world.

Elisa smiled again, turning her attention back to her work. She sketched a figure on the paper, one which eerily resembled the creature. She knew she could never really give back the beauty he was, but she could very well try, couldn't she?

She took one of the smaller brushes, and dipped it in the blue paint, mashing it with a little bit of green. She started to colour the figure, with each stroke it looked more and more like the real fishman. She decided to add a few yellow and light pink stripes as well, to make it look more alive.

Meanwhile the real fishman covered his whole paper in dark blue paint. He just kept making bold strokes, more enthusiastic than ever; Elisa had to stop him to pull the paper away from him and replace it with a new one, which soon turned just as blue ad the previous.

_What are you painting?_ Elisa asked him, pointing at his work.

The creature thought for a bit, and then signed the word for _water_. Elisa smiled.

_Of course. It's beautiful._

The creature nodded. He pointed at the blue paint, and then at his paper, and then at Elisa.

_Beautiful_ , he signed.


	20. One perfect moment

"Just be careful, dear. Make sure you hold onto him and come up for air!" Giles took Elisa's clothes as she stripped down to her plain black bathing suit. They were standing on the docks, while the creature was swimming around in the water in front of them. They had a warm, sunny March morning, just perfect for a swim. Elisa was so excited, it was probably good that Giles reminded her that she needed to breath. She was going to swim with her fishman!

The idea has been forming in her mind for weeks now, but so far, the weather had been playing against them. But now, the weather was perfect, and there was nothing to stop them. Giles was a little bit worried, because the river was deep, but Elisa assured him that she will be okay. She could swim, and besides, the fishman wasn't going to let anything happen to her. She sat on the edge and dangled her legs off of the docks into the water. It wasn't exactly warm, but it wasn't too cold either; perfect for the fishman, but Elisa needed to get used to it before jumping in. She reached into the water and splashed her legs and arms. The fishman's head popped up as he swam closer to Elisa. He reached for her, inviting her into the water, into his home. He was just as excited as Elisa.

She sighed as she got a hold of the wooden planks and finally lowered herself carefully into the river.

The creature was immediately right next to her, placing his arms around her lower back, helping and holding her up. Elisa let go of the edge of the dock and tied her arms around his neck, laughing. She was swimming with him! The creature slowly moved them further from the docks, further from Giles, who was sitting in his old camping chair with a newspaper in his lap, watching them. Elisa waved at the old man, who waved back cheerfully.

After a few minutes, Elisa pushed herself away from the creature, motioning him to go below the surface. The creature did so, and Elisa followed him down. She kept her eyes open underwater, trying to adjust to the blurry picture. This part of the river was surprisingly clear, despite of being in the urban area. Elisa could make out two old anchors stuck at the bottom, and a few wooden posts. There were tiny fishes swimming at the bottom, and a lot of colourful rocks.

Elisa quickly went up for air, and then dove back down. She wasn't the best swimmer, but she had the best help: as she tried to get herself deeper down, the creature swam next to her, touching her hands and adjusting them so she could practice more efficient strokes. She kicked her legs and headed toward the bottom, the creature right behind her. Elisa would've laughed if she hadn't been afraid of water filling her mouth and lungs. She could see now why the creature loved swimming so much. Underwater, it was just him and her. There was no one else, no people, no judgement, no rights and wrongs, just a woman and her fishman. She felt happy and free.

When she ran out of air, she reached for the creature and pointed up. He nodded, then grabbed her waist and held her close; as they moved towards the surface, Elisa felt like they weren't even swimming. The creature moved with such grace and speed that it felt like flying. Elisa took a deep breath when they emerged from underwater, her eyes searching for Giles at the docks. She waved at him again, grinning, and Giles flashed back a thumbs up.

" _Kids these days..._ " Giles murmured to himself and hid his smile behind the Baltimore Gazette.

Elisa flipped to her back, and facing the sky, she closed her eyes. If there existed a perfect day, then this was it. She was lightweight as she was floating on the water surface, the sun warming up her cold limbs. She felt the creature moving next to her, one of his hands on her back, the other placed on her stomach. She opened her eyes and turned her head slightly, so she can glance at him. The creature's body was glowing turquoise, emerald, and gold, his scales reflecting the sunlight as tiny diamonds. Elisa had never felt such happiness.

She moved her hand, so she could hold the creature's, intertwining their fingers under the water.

If only this moment could last forever.


End file.
